


Blue bird gone away

by Hapsetshut



Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types
Genre: F/F, F/M, Gen, M/M, Multi, Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-03
Updated: 2019-06-03
Packaged: 2020-04-07 01:30:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,992
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19074727
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hapsetshut/pseuds/Hapsetshut
Summary: Dick lost his memory and started calling himself 'Ric' and it was so stupid someone had to go down and fix that shit





	Blue bird gone away

**Author's Note:**

> I'll update this later or something

As he leaves the subway he hears a high pitched cackling echo around the chamber. He stops and guards himself, expecting a fight. Though, he wasn’t sure how they got in. He’d be able to tell if someone was following him, he just knew things like that.

 

“So, you’re just gonna burn everything down and hope it doesn’t find it’s way back from the ashes? That’s cute, it really is”. A woman walked out from an adjoining tunnel and, like all the others, Rick did not recognize her. Yet, somehow this was a different kind of not remembering.

 

She was tall for one, somewhere over 6ft, dressed all in red with heels that were in no way going to help her navigate through abandoned subway tunnels with ease. Her hair was so blonde it seemed to glow in the darkness of the underground. She had it all pulled back in a tight ponytail so nothing obstructed her face. Most notably out of all this though, was the large fireaim slung into her belt. It was a strange looking gun to say the least. It somewhat resembles a colt lightning but it was huge and bulky. Hardly looked effective and he was surprised the lady didn’t seem encumbered by its weight on her hip.

 

“Hi there Richy boy” she wiggled her fingers as a wave and flashed him a coy smile.

 

“I don-”

 

“Remember me? Yeah I know. You wouldn’t because we’ve actually never met. You basically knew that though. When you looked at me you didn’t know me but it wasn’t like some of the others where you’re all ‘I used to know this but it’s not there anymore’ and there was none of that when you looked at me”

 

His heart jumped. How? He had never really thought of it that way but she was right. That’s what it felt like.Before he could ask anything she answered. 

 

“Low level psychic connectivity”

 

“That is  _ not  _ what it’s called,” A voice came from behind her and the shadow of man, taller than her even, came to stand beside her.

 

“Well that’s what I’m calling it so screw you” She smiled up at him and impish delight sprawled across her lips

 

“Ok if I don’t know you then what do you want? Did Babrea or those other people send you to try and get me to go ‘back’?” Wherever back even was.

 

“Pfffft! Hell no! They don’t know us either.We’re our own thing, here for our own reasons”

 

“Which would be what exactly? Mugging me in a subway tunnel?”

 

She gave him a flat look. “I don’t care if you  _ did  _ just get shot in the head you are  _ so  _ much more creative than that” 

 

“It wasn’t just it was four months ago” the man seemed exasperated with correcting her

 

“Wait wait wait, you say you don’t know me then how-”

 

“Ah! I never said I didn’t know you know did I? I said we’d never met. And you’re the one who doesn’t know me, I on the other hand, know all about you and what use to be your family”

 

“Eh? Oh those guys. So what, you gonna try to make me remember my life too or something?” he was getting a little fed up with this girl and her answers for everything.

 

“Quite the opposite actually,” she started walking towards him, her companion staying where he was in the shadow smoking a dying cigarette. Rick fanned a relaxed state but never let his guard down. “This, what you’re doing here,” she motioned to all of him then the fire burning down the stairwell, “I like this. This could be something very interesting. I wanna see where it goes”.

 

She was more or less right beside him now, he had to turn his head to look at her but he didn’t like doing that cause it didn’t give him a good line of sight back to her companion.

 

“Chill there boyo,” she tapped his shoulder and it unwillingly flinced. “No one's getting gang beaten tonight” She continued to the top of the stairs where the flames licked at her feet. An overjoyed expression sort of came over her face as she started down at it. 

 

“All I know is beauty, beauty is all I am” she muttered the words almost unconsciously before place a hand flat and palm up in front of her chest while the other made a sweeping motion over the area of the flames. Seconds later the fire starting swirling about conjuring itself into a flaming tornado that began hurling itself towards them. Ric lifted his arm to cover his eyes expecting to feel the searing heat hit at any moment, but it didn’t come. He lowered it to see the woman standing there holding, a ball? It was a sphere anyway but there didn’t seem to really be a container. In it was what had been the contents of the HQ as they had been left before the fire completely unburned. “I’m keeping this” she closed her hand and the sphere disappeared.

 

He blinked. “Why?”

 

“What do you care you were gonna throw it away” She walked past him poking his forehead playfully as she went

 

“Fair enough, but why all, this?” he motioned to her the man and where the fire had been. “What are you trying to get out of this? Why did you come looking for me? Why do you even care?”

 

She smiled, and there was definitely some  smugness  behind it. Her arm rose, strighted and she pointed a finger directly at him.

 

“You” she somewhat announced it as if she wanted a whole room to hear.

 

“.....okay, what now?” She grabbed onto his shoulders from behind more or less falling on top of him.

 

“You were a person once, right now you’re not, but you’re owning it, and it’s  _ amazing _ ! Your path use to be such a straight line but now it’s shattered! You could end up anywhere, being anything!” she seemed to be getting very excited by these prospects. “You are an open beacon and you're absolutely dripping with potential!” She stopped short after saying that, a blank look crawling across her face. “ Mother fuck !”

 

“What is it now darling?” The man straightened himself flicking the bud of the remaining cigarette away.

 

“I’m becoming self referential. That can only lead to problems that’ll turn into some weeping angel syndrome shit,” she looked at her counterpart, clear disgusted by this prospect.    
“Christ I have to go take care of this before I let it get any worse, entertain our quarry will you” she set off down the nearest tunnel hurriedly

 

_ Quarry? _

 

‘Rick’ began to study the man he’d been left alone with, as the stranger took out another cigarette. The briefest flicker of light illuminating his face for just a moment as it was lit and his face could finally be made out. His features were soft, for a man. His cheekbones prominent, meeting with a slender but sturdy nose. His eyes were a shade of green that could only be described as elektric and it appeared his nails were colored in a similar shade.His hair was spiked upward, not like a teenager like someone had actually styled it, and yet it looked surprisingly natural on him. His cloths were what some would call sloppy but seemed more like they were almost carefree. It was a tan casual suit that hung off him slightly. Only the middle buttons were done and his crumpled dress shirt was allowed to overlap his jackets lapels and the top four buttons were not done up so a far amount of his chest was showing his pale chest. Pale. Now that he thought on it the man was pale, almost sickly so but there were no other signs of him being unhealthy.

 

“Well,” he turned to him and smiled, “I guess it’s my turn to chat you up” he extended a slender hand, “Penni” he took the hand cautiously. 

 

“Ric, usually.” Penni frowned. “Yeah I’m not calling you that. Rick’s a mechanics name”

 

“Are you gonna be like Barbra and insist on calling me-”

 

“Dick?” what was with these guys and finishing his sentences? “No, you don’t seem too keen on that so we’ll be avoiding it. What was it the girl in the bar playing darts called you?” They’d followed him to the bar? How? “Grey! That was it! We’ll call you Grey at least that has semblance of dignity to it”

 

“Right,” he still had no idea what was going on. “So, while chatty kathy’s away, mind actually telling me what all this is about?”

 

The man took another deep breath of smoke. “That's not such an easy question to answer my friend. This stories got more going on than what's just on the surface. But Vice was being straight with you. You're what caught our attention”.

 

“Vice?”

 

“Hmm?” The man seemed confused for a moment. “Oh! That's her name, Vice”

 

“Is that her given name or…?”

 

“It is in fact her only name, though she has a few titles she’s gained over the years”

 

“Suuuure” he didn’t know how much more of this gibberish he was gonna be able to stand. “Why do I seem so important to so many goddamn people then? It seems like I can’t go two days without somebody showing up trying to convince  me of who I am! I’m just trying to live my life is that too much to ask?”

 

The man smiled softly beneath his smoke. there was nothing unusual about the smile and yet it seemed...unatraul. “But you don’t have a life, not anymore. You gave that all up. You’re not  Dick Grayson anymore, you’re not the blue bird whose wings you felt compelled to clip”

 

“Blue what now?” The other man gave a dark chuckle as he moved to stand up straight. He really was tall.

 

“Your  life was a set line. The path was certain and the course known, then you died”

 

“I didn’t die. I got shot, how did you people find-”

 

“You died,” he continued, “but like always you got better. No real surprise there. But then” he bent down so they were face to face. It caused Grey to jump back unexpectedly. “You decided to stay dead. You killed yourself and broke your path apart. There’s no more trajectory for you, you can go wherever you like. And more than anything, we want to see where you go. You’re an epicenter now. Worlds will live and die around you. We’re just here to take advantage of that”

 

Ric started up at the man, completely lost. “What did you even just say?” The man chortled and the unnatural smile revealed itself again. He reach out, his hand lightly ghosting by the others cheek, neary but not quite touching it. 

 

“Nature abhors a vacuum my dear, and you left quite a vaccenty”

 

And then, he sang, soft but clear

 

“ _ Why do birds, suddenly appear, everytime, you draw near. Just like me, they wish to be _ ,” then he touched him, and it burned, “ _ close to you _ ”. He couldn’t move, he couldn’t scream. He was frozen. His blood felt like ice in his veins 

 

His brain managed to register footstep coming from behind them and the woman, Vice apparently, came into view.

 

“You boys have fun while I was away?” The man's hand moved away from ‘Ric’s’ face and he was released from whatever had been done to him.

 

 

“I did, he might have a different opinion though” the man smiled down on him and a shiver ran through his entire being

 

“Alright, we done here then gentlemen?” The man smiled and gently recoiled his hand.

 

“Yes I think we’re good here my dear, for now at least” Ric caught himself on the wall, breathing heavy like he’d just had the wind knocked out of him.

  
“We’ll be seeing you again soon,  **Grey** ”


End file.
